Hospitalized
by nejiandtentenfan
Summary: The ninjas of Konoha are around 16 now. What happens when Tenten gets back from a mission and has permanent respiratory problems? What happens to her and Neji when she has to stay in a hospital room for the rest of her life? [NejiTen]
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Inspired by an Asian MV I've seen. Hahaha, anyways, I don't own Naruto. Enjoy. Oh yeah, for the story "I've Been Waiting," I wrote Chapter 1, but the story is actually complete! Sorry for the confusion!**

Chapter 1

Tenten sat upright on the edge of her hospital bed, she gazed out the window. It was a beautiful sunny day, she could see many little kids scurrying around the streets pretending they were ninjas. Tenten watched a blonde haired girl and a pink haired girl walking down the street together laughing and smiling. Tenten sighed, _well at least Ino and Sakura are having a good time._

Tenten watched another group of ninjas walk by, consisting of all boys. Naruto, Shino, Chouji, Kiba, and Lee were all walking together. They weren't particularly cheery, but Tenten would rather be with her friends than in an isolated room with one TV all day long.

That's how days were for Tenten since 2 months ago. Two months ago, Team Gai had been sent on a mission and Tenten came back almost dead. In fact, she came back even more dead than the time Neji had come back from the pursuing Sasuke mission. Most of Tenten's bones had been crushed, several of her internal organs slashed, and she had zero chakra. She used most of it during battle, and after she fainted the enemies drained the rest of it out of her body.

Tenten was lucky to even BE alive. She remembered that day. She was in so much pain, she would rather have died. She passed out, but Gai Sensei told her Neji carried her limp body and sprinted all the way back to Konoha, which wasn't terribly far away, but he sprinted the whole way without stopping.

After Tenten woke up, she found herself in the hospital, paralyzed. _What's the point of living if you can't even move? _Tenten fell into depression, until 2 weeks later, the Fifth performed 3 powerful surgeries on her…all in one day. Tenten was exhausted and slept for 3 days straight.

But, when she woke up again, she found herself able to move. She even felt back to normal! She turned to ask a nurse what was happening.

The nurse explained, "The surgeries Tsunade-Sama performed were a success, and you are pretty much completely healed!"

Tenten was so excited she jumped out of bed and started walking quickly to the door, "I have to tell my team!"

The nurse stopped her, "Well…uh…there were a FEW things…that just couldn't be healed."

Tenten stopped. Her face fell and she stammered, "W-What do…you…mean…?"

The nurse looked pained to explain the details to Tenten, "Well…you have permanent respiratory problems…so…we forbid you from going out of the hospital."

Tenten's eyes teared up, "I…h-have t-to stay in the h-hospital for the rest of m-my life…?"

The nurse paused, "Well…if you wanted to go somewhere, you'd have to ask for permission."

Tenten sighed, "Oh…ok…thanks."

Tenten sulkily walked back to her cot and laid down. She buried her head in her pillow and started crying.

She spent most of her days doing nothing but watch TV all day. Luckily though, Neji would visit her often. He visited her about once every 3 days, that was all he had time for. He would walk into her room and lay down next to her, untying her buns and running his fingers through her hair. She would rest her head on his chest and be lulled to sleep by Neji's steady breathing.

Neji would sleep with her until early in the morning. He would slowly leave her side while she was still sleeping. When she woke up, she would feel cold without the warmth of Neji's body. She would blink a few times and feel a sharp pang of sorrow when she realized Neji had already left.

This was her boring life. And it was all a stupid mission's fault.

On the semi-bright side, today was one of the days Neji was going to visit her. Tenten waited anxiously. Only a few more hours until it was about time…

---

Tenten heard the creak of the door and she immediately turned her head. She blushed a little at her anxiousness. Neji smiled a bit and did the usual. Tenten lay next to him and couldn't help but wonder why he always took time out of his busy life to visit her.

She poked his arm a little. Neji, not turning his eyesight away from the TV, simply grunted, "Hn."

"Neji…why do you…always visit me…?"

Neji turned his head and looked at her. She admired his gorgeous white eyes. He said in a flat voice, "Well…wouldn't it be wrong to never visit your lover in their time of need?"

Tenten pondered it and thought, _Neji always has a celever answer to everything._

She simply nodded and nuzzled her head on his chest, and the two of them continued to watch the TV show. It was a romance drama episode, they had watched it together from the beginning. The girl was in an endless snowy bliss, trudging her feet miserably and screaming her lover's name, "WHERE ARE YOU?"

The young girl in the show collapsed on her knees and cried into her cupped hands.

Tenten thought this was terribly sad. Her eyes began to tear up, _what would happen if Neji left me like that?_

Large tears started rolling out of her eyes and she sobbed into Neji's shoulder. Neji glanced at her. _Women cry so easily._

Tenten cried herself to sleep and Neji clicked the TV off. He closed his eyes and tried to rest but something felt different…Tenten seemed to be hugging him harder tonight.

_The movie wasn't THAT sad, _Neji thought. Little did Neji know, Tenten was not really crying about the movie, she was dreaming.

_-Tenten's Dream-_

_Tenten was walking side by side with Neji. They were walking slowly and were holding hands. Tenten looked up at Neji and asked, "Neji…you won't ever leave me, will you?"_

_Neji looked back at her and said, "Of course not."_

_But in the dream time was passing and they were getting older as they walked. And once they were 21 years old Neji stopped and looked at Tenten, "Stay here."_

_Tenten didn't know what was happening, but she obediently stopped and stayed in her spot._

_Neji kept walking without her. There was a horizontal white line on the ground and Neji crossed it. As soon as he did, his clothes changed. He was wearing a tuxedo. And a woman of 21, that was not her, appeared next to him wearing a white gown, holding his hand. The woman and Neji turned to look at Tenten._

_The woman sort of started waving goodbye at Tenten, but Neji just nodded at her, and then they turned around and started leaving. Tenten, realizing they were getting married, started running frantically towards them, but when she got to the line, there seemed to be a barrier…sort of like an invisible wall she couldn't get past._

_She banged on the transparent barrier that kept her from her lover and cried and screamed out to Neji, but he didn't even turn to look at her. He just kept strolling down the street with his new spouse._

_Tenten collapsed on her knees, like in the TV show, and started crying, her hands cupped over her face. Between sobs she said, "Neji…you said…you wouldn't…leave me…"_

_-End of Tenten's Dream-_

---

The next morning, Neji woke up at about 4:00 AM and was about to leave Tenten like he normally did, but today he was struggling. He was looking around to see what was the matter. He glanced down at his body, which was being embraced by Tenten, she was clutching him so hard he could barely move.

Neji looked at her facial expression, her brows were furrowed and she looked like she was in pain. _She must be having a nightmare…_Neji inquired.

Tenten started murmuring something in her sleep, and Neji's ears strained to listen. She sort of said, "Ne…ji…don't…leave…me…"

This took Neji by surprise at first, _is she awake? How does she know I'm leaving? _But then Neji figured she must be dreaming of him leaving by the looks of her face.

Neji felt bad for leaving her while she was having a bad dream, so he decided, _I can stay a few hours longer._

Neji continued to rest with her until about 7:00 AM. A ray of sunlight shined through the hospital window and hit Tenten right smack in the eye. Tenten stirred a little and blinked a few times. As her vision un-blurred, she could make out a figure lying down next to her. _Could it be…_

"Neji!" Tenten said a bit surprised and hugged him.

Neji didn't do anything and just nodded.

Tenten stopped embracing him and looked up, "Why haven't you left yet?"

Neji shrugged, "You were having a bad dream, so I decided to stay here."

Tenten paused, she thought for a moment, _how did Neji know?_

She spoke her thoughts and asked, "How did you know?"

Neji shrugged again and said, "Your facial expressions. And you were sleep talking."

Tenten blushed a deep red and stammered, "I-I…s-sleeptalk?"

Neji smirked, "Yeah."

Tenten blushed even redder, if that was possible, and asked hesitantly, "W-What…d-did I say?"

Neji's face was blank of emotion when he replied, "You told me not to leave, so I didn't."

Tenten looked down at the bed when she heard this. Her mind was thinking about everything that happened in the dream. The details were so vivid and she could still remember everything that happened.

She looked at Neji, "Oh…"

Neji was about to get up and leave her when she interrupted, "You know…"

Neji turned to look at her.

"You know…I had a dream that you left me to marry another girl."

Neji just looked at her with a blank face and grinned, "Are you saying…I would leave you for someone more beautiful?"

Tenten, whose face had gotten back to it's original color, turned a light shade of pink again and answered, "I-I donno…would you?"

"Baka."

"Oh good," Tenten smiled at the thought that in reality Neji would never leave her, except early in the mornings to train.

Neji smirked, "There's no one more beautiful than you."

Tenten blushed and Neji was ontop of her, kissing her passionately. Tenten, returning those kisses.

Tenten felt something wrong, her lungs felt like they were getting smaller and smaller. She suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe. A sharp pain went through her chest and somehow, her nose started bleeding.

Neji released from the kiss and looked at her face, her nose now covered with blood. Tenten looked at Neji and giggled when she saw that she had gotten some blood on him, "Gomensai Neji."

Tenten handed a new tissue to him, amd he started wiping the blood from his face when the nurse came in.

She looked cheery and was carrying a tray of hot soup for Tenten's breakfast. When she saw Neji ontop of Tenten, and Tenten's nose all bloody, she gasped. She eyed Neji and said emotionlessly, "You'd best leave now."

Tenten giggled and kissed Neji goobye.

Neji walked out of the hospital room and the nurse set the tray down next to Tenten's bed. She treated Tenten's respiratory problems and her bloody nose. She shook her head slowly as she worked, "Tsk tsk, does that kid cause you anything but trouble?"

Tenten smiled dreamily and didn't respond. She looked out the window and saw Neji walking away. Neji briefly turned his head and smiled at Tenten, and she returned the smile. Tenten's heart melted when Neji looked at her like that.

The nurse however, glared at Neji as she looked out the window. She muttered, "Kids these days…"

**A/N: So…what'd you think? Sorry if it was really crappy, I tried. Please review! Thanks a bunch.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I don't own Naruto, if I did, Tenten's last name would be Hyuuga by now.**

Chapter 2

Tenten slowly drank her soup. The liquid dissappeared and she was left with a few vegetables. She put her bowl down, not feeling like eating the veggies.

"Vegetables are good for your body," Tenten heard a gentle female voice say.

Tenten turned her head to the doorway, "Oh, hi Sakura! Sorry, I didn't hear you enter."

Sakura smiled and said, "It's ok."

Tenten wondered why Sakura was here, "Why are you…"

Sakura caught onto what Tenten was wondering and quickly answered, "Oh, Tsunade-sama has been working day and night to figure out how to cure your repiratory problems and she thinks she's found a treatment, and I'm supposed to treat you…"

Tenten blushed when she heard the words 'respiratory problems.' She remembered how she got her blood on his face when they had their little make out session. Tenten smiled, "Ok."

Sakura walked over to Tenten's bed and told her to close her eyes. Tenten obediently followed her instructions. Sakura performed a jutsu that put her to sleep for a while.

Sakura's hands glowed bright green as she inserted her own chakra into Tenten's lungs. Tenten winced a bit in her sleep. Sakura took out all the impurities from her body and cleansed it.

Within a few minutes, Tenten's body was fully repaired and all Sakura had to do was get her to swallow down a small bottle of medicine, specially made by Tsunade-sama. She lifted Tenten's chin and poured the small amount of cool liquid down Tenten's throat.

Tenten slowly woke up and blinked all the blurriness out of her eyes. Sakura's hands glowed green again and looked through Tenten's chakra systems. Tenten's body looked perfectly normal again.

"Tsunade-sama sure is a medical genius," Sakura admired.

Tenten's eyes widened, "You mean I'm…healed?"

Sakura nodded and smiled.

Tenten jumped out of bed and before running through the door asked, "So I can leave?"

Sakura said, "Yes you can. That sure was some strong medicine."

Tenten thanked Sakura for everything and checked out of the hospital. She ran straight to the training ground where she knew Gai Sensei, Lee, and Neji would be. As she got closer and closer to the training grounds, she heard Gai Sensei and Lees' loud youthful voices. She couldn't hear Neji though because as always, he never talked much during training.

She hid behind a tree and watched them train. Neji and Lee were in full combat, Lee quicker than ever, but Neji of course, even quicker.

After a few minutes, Neji put his hand out in a stop position and turned and looked straight at the tree Tenten was hiding behind, his Byakugan fully activated. He smirked, "Aren't you supposed to be in the hospital…Tenten?"

Lee's eyes widened and yelled, "Tenten-chan!! WHERE?!" He jumped up and down from excitement.

Tenten smiled and stepped out from behind the tree. She walked over to where they were training. Lee immediately ran over to her and hugged her.

Tenten stammered, "Uh…I missed you too Lee…"

She had to push him away a little before he started crying, "It is truly a miracle. The angel of our group has returned from the dead."

Tenten laughed nervously, "Heh…Lee I never…died…"

Neji rolled his eyes and hugged Tenten from behind. She blushed. "Neji…" she whispered as she felt his touch.

Gai Sensei just smiled one of his famous glistening smiles at her. _Gai Sensei hasn't changed at all, _Tenten thought.

Lee looked at Neji embracing her and Tenten blushing. Lee tilted his head sideways and said in an innocent way, "Neji-san, I did not know that you and Tenten-chan were married."

Neji let go of Tenten and gave him a funny look. Tenten blushed even redder, "We're not…"

Lee looked at Neji and sounded a little frustrated, "But Neji-san! You always lecture me about emotions!"

Lee immitated Neji in the funniest way. Lee closed his eyes for a while and then opened them, his face void of emotion. He said in a calm, low, and unyouthful voice, "Emotions, including love, are always a weakness to a shinobi. An exception is if you're married, then you may show a few signs of affection."

Then Lee closed his eyes again and opened them, his face completely different then before. His eyes were sparkling and he had a huge smile on his face. His voice was now high and dreamy, "Oh Tenten! I missed you!" and he hugged the air.

Tenten cracked up and started laughing really hard. Neji however, wasn't finding this funny at all.

Lee closed his eyes one more time and then opened them, this time returning to his normal self, "So I do not understand Neji-san. Are you a hypocrite?"

The vein on Neji's temple was throbbing with annoyance. He didn't even bother to answer.

Tenten was still laughing, Gai Sensei was trying to keep himself from cracking up like Tenten had done.

Lee had now started laughing a bit. Neji closed his eyes and his arms were crossed. After a few minutes, Neji's fist glowed blue and he opened his eyes. Neji immediately lunged at Lee who was unaware of what was happening. Neji quickly knocked him down and Lee couldn't get up.

He was already too weak from their training before. Neji smirked, "We never finished our match, but I see I've won…again."

Lee shook his head, "How could I forget? A ninja never lets his or her guard down! You are truly amazing Neji-san, thank you for the excellent training session."

Neji smirked and bowed, symbolizing the end of the match.

Gai Sensei spoke, "Would you all like to go to Ichiraku's Ramen Bar to celebrate Tenten's return?"

Lee and Tenten's faces both lit up and yelled, "OK!"

Neji simply nodded.

Gai Sensei smiled and his eyes glistened with tears, "Good to have the old team back."

As they were walking away from the training ground and toward the ramen shop, there were many people walking the opposite direction who were staring at Tenten, whispering.

Neji looked at Tenten and thought, _people expected Tenten to be in the hospital for the rest of her life._

When they walked inside the ramen shop and sat down Tenten inhaled deeply. She let out a peaceful sigh. The delightful aroma of delicious noodles filled her nostrils. Teuchi, the shop keeper looked at the team and smiled brightly when he saw Tenten, "Well well well, if it isn't little Ama!"

Tenten blushed when she heard herself be referred to as Ama. Ama came from the term 'Ama kudari' which means 'descending from heaven.' Many people called her this. This is also why Lee called her 'the angel of the team.' It was like how Sakura was the 'cherry blossom of her team.'

"So what would you guys like to eat today?" Teuchi asked cheerfully.

Every single one of them ordered Tonkatsu ramen, except for Tenten.

Tenten said politely, "Do you have any daifuku?"

Teuchi looked confused and said, "Yes we do, is that all you want?"

Tenten nodded, and Neji glanced at her. _Is she trying to starve herself? _Neji thought.

While they were waiting for their food to be served Neji said quietly to her, "You know I'm not into super skinny girls."

Tenten giggled and was about to kiss him when she remembered Lee and Gai Sensei were there. She instead replied, "Well, I had a big breakfast today."

Neji raised his eyebrow, "A small bowl of soup is what you call a big breakfast?"

Tenten blushed. She didn't think Neji would remember.

Ayame, Teuchi's daughter, came out smiling with a large tray with their orders.

They all said the formal, "Idakimasu."

The boys ate their large steaming bowls of noodles while Tenten ate her three small daifukus. She was basically just eating rice flour filled with red bean paste.

When they were finished Lee said, "Oh yes Tenten-chan! I feel bad for not having a present for you! My mother packed me a lunch, so I shall give it to you!"

Lee opened his little lunch box and handed it to Tenten. Tenten looked inside the small box and saw a few chunks of sour red looking fruits. UMEBOSHI!

Tenten laughed nervously and handed the small lunch box back to Lee, "Thanks Lee, but…I…uh…"

Neji couldn't help but smirk when he saw the umeboshi inside the lunchbox. "She hates umeboshi," Neji finished for her.

Tenten blushed.

Lee apologized, "Gomensai Tenten-chan, I had no idea! I will get you something else!"

Tenten shook her head, "That's very kind of you Lee, but really, it's ok!"

Lee nodded and the four of them left the ramen shop.

Lee and Gai Sensei said they wanted to train more, so Tenten nodded and her and Neji started walking the opposite direction.

Neji asked where they were going. Tenten hadn't thought about it, she just felt nice around Neji. She quickly answered, "Oh…uh…where are YOU going?"

Neji replied, "I don't have anything to do. I'm just going home."

_Oh, _Tenten thought.

Tenten asked, "Can I come?"

Neji looked at his chocolate haired teammate for a second, and nodded.

Tenten smiled, she didn't know why she had asked. She just found no point in going back home. Her parents were on a business trip anyways.

As soon as they walked into the Hyuuga's house, they walked straight up to his room. It was cold and pretty empty. No posters, no pictures, nothing. All he had was a low black futon, a wooden dresser, and a bathroom.

Neji told her before walking downstairs, "Hold on, I'll fix us some tea."

Tenten nodded and was alone in her room. Something caught her eye. A small white book was lying on top of Neji's dresser. Tenten sneakily walked over and looked at the cover. It was blank. She opened to the first page and read a little bit and gasped.

She had just found Hyuuga Neji's diary.

**A/N: Please comment/review. I did a little revising because of a few weird grammar errors XD**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I don't own Naruto!**

Chapter 3

Tenten's eyes were glued on the pages of that small white book. _What secrets could this book hold? What does he think about me?_

Tenten flipped to the very first entry. Tenten's eyes widened, "THIS WAS WRITTEN THREE YEARS AGO!"

It was written on the first day of school in plain neat font. The entries were very short, but they were enough. The first entry read:

_September 3, 2004_

_Today was the first day of school. It was pretty boring. I've already learned all the techniques they taught. Actually, they did a lot of weaponry. The girl that sits in front of me, I think her name's Tenten or something, is really good with weapons. __She's pretty too._

Neji crossed out the part about Tenten being pretty. Tenten rolled her eyes, she thought of Lee's imitation of Neji, "Emotions, including love, are a weakness to a shinobi."

Tenten flipped a few pages over. It was the next year, and they had become close teammates.

_November 26, 2005_

_Today we trained with Gai Sensei for 10 hours straight. Tenten passed out. Lee and Gai Sensei started crying, so I was the one who got to carry Tenten all the way to the hospital. She was a lot lighter than I expected, and she has a really nice figure._

Tenten blushed when she read this. She was pretty skinny back then, not as much muscle. Tenten was a slender sort of muscular now. Her arms and legs were very well toned. Tenten flipped another two year over.

_March 2, 2007_

_We went on a mission today. It turned out horribly. Tenten almost died. Her whole body was bloody and limp. I carried her to the hospital and slept by her side on her hospital bed for a long time. She would groan in pain every few minutes. She held onto me the whole time, even when I tried to pry her fingers off of me, she unconciously refused. She would speak a few phrases from time to time. She said some thing likes "don't" or "stop." She said my name a lot of times. I wondered why. After a while, she let go of me so I got up to leave. Right before I left she said "aishiteru Neji." I stared at her to check if she was awake or not. She wasn't…_

Tenten put the book down, she realized Neji had learned a lot about how she felt about him from her sleeptalk. Tenten heard Neji's footsteps on the stairs. They were slow. Tenten hadn't seen enough, she needed so see at least one more entry. She quickly flipped to the latest entry, which was written yesterday. She quickly skimmed the page.

_June 1, 2007_

_I am so lucky to live in the same village as Sakura-chan. She is the most amazing girl you could ever ask for. She is pretty, smart, funny, strong, and I could keep going on and on. Out of all the girls in Konoha, she's the only one I would ever really love._

Tenten heard Neji standing right outside her door. She remembered Neji could have his Byakugan activated and see her holding his diary. Fearfully, she quickly dropped the book in the position she had found it.

When Neji walked in with a tray of tea, she looked at his eyes. _Nope, I'm safe._

Tenten was so astounded by what she had just read, _I guess Neji really doesn't like me. He likes…Sakura…but then again who doesn't? She's so much prettier…_

Neji noticed Tenten's downcast face and took note of it. Tenten took her tea and silently sipped it. Neji looked at her, "Is something wrong, Tenten?"

Tenten shook her head, not looking at him.

Neji's brow furrowed, "You're not a good liar."

Tenten looked at him with a pained expression, "Why didn't you tell me about Sakura?"

Neji took a sip of the aromatic green tea he had prepared. He hadn't the slightest idea of what she was talking about. He looked at her with a blank expression, "I don't know what you're talking about."

Tenten set the tea down on the table loudly. It made a loud clink sound, some of the tea sloshed out. She stood up, her fists clenched. She wasn't about to let an arrogant Hyuuga play with her emotions.

She started walking towards the door. Neji didn't know what was wrong with her, but he wasn't going to stop her. Tenten slammed the door shut. He could hear the faint sounds of her footsteps running out of his house.

"Must be her time of the month," Neji said. But he knew better than that. From the sound of it, she thought he was having an affair with Sakura.

Neji's mind suddenly clicked, "She read my diary."

Neji flipped to the most recent entry, "She must've skimmed it. She didn't read the whole thing."

At the bottom of the entry said:

_Arigato Neji-san for letting my write in your diary._

_-Rock Lee_

Neji let out a sigh, "Women. Always drawing conclusions too soon."

Neji picked up his phone and called Tenten's cell phone.

Tenten's cell phone started ringing. She looked at it. The screen told her Hyuuga Neji was calling, _no use trying to apologize to me now Neji._ Neji got put to her voicemail, he scowled, "Tenten, if you're going to read my diary, make sure you read the whole entry next time. Lee wrote that in my diary, he signed it near the end of the entry…which you didn't read."

Neji sighed and put his phone down, _once Tenten gets the message she'll understand._

Tenten stuck the phone in her pocket before Neji left the voicemail. Tenten just kept walking in anger. She was walking alone on the street at night. Female…walking alone…at night…not good.

Tenten heard a few footsteps behind her. She turned around, no one was there. Tenten continued to walk, she could've swore someone was following her. She felt a bit uneasy. Although she was mad at Neji, she sure felt a whole lot safer with Neji around.

Suddenly someone grabbed her from behind and carried her behind a bush. There were 3 ninjas dressed in all black. One of them forced her clothes off and the other two grinned menacingly at her body.

That night, you could hear the shrill scream of a 16 year old, chocolate haired Chuunin…who had just been raped.

---

The next morning, at 6:00 AM, Neji's phone rang next to his futon. Neji sleepily stuck his arm out of the covers and felt around for his phone. He felt his cell phone and picked it up to see who was calling. It was Sakura.

"Hello?"

"Hi…Neji…?"

"Hn?"

"I think you might want to come to the hospital…"

"Why?"

"Tenten was…uh…hurt badly…last night."

Neji's eyes widened, "I'll be there."

Neji hung up and quickly got changed. He ran out of his house and ran straight to the hospital.

Once he got there he demanded Tenten's room number from the nurse. The nurse remembered him. The one who had made out with Tenten. She glared at him and pointed coldly.

Neji ran to where the nurse had pointed without thanking her. Gai Sensei was outside of the room, talking to a doctor. His face wasn't youthful and peppy like it normally was. Instead, he looked angry and pained at the same time. Gai Sensei solemnly walked over to Neji.

His head was low, "Do you want to see Tenten?"

Neji nodded.

He walked into Tenten's room and his eyes widened as he watched the sleeping girl. Her face was scratched up. Her arms were scratched up. Her upper body was bandaged, but he could see large bruises around her abdomen area.

The doctor walked in and asked Neji if he knew what had happened.

Neji shook his head.

The doctor explained to Neji what had happened, "Miss Tenten was badly abused last night…"

Neji nodded, he wasn't sure he'd be able to handle what was coming next.

"She was…brutally raped…"

Neji clenched his fists, his eyes tinted with anger. He forced himself to listen to the rest, "Judging by the looks of those bruises on her body, it was not only one person…I'd saw a few. We have no evidence of who did it…but I assure you, ANBU is working on this case."

Neji watched Tenten again. He felt rage reach every end of his body. He glanced at Tenten again, she was still asleep.

Neji understood now why some people, such as Uchiha Sasuke, had willed to become avengers. Itatchi had killed his parents, and Sasuke wanted revenge. These unknown people had hurt Tenten and she would never be the same.

Neji didn't need anyone to tell him this, he wasn't dumb. He knew that when a girl was sexually abused like that, they would never EVER be the same. Tenten might not even want to be a kunoichi anymore.

Gai Sensei walked up to Neji and laid his hand on Neji's shoulder and spoke softly, "Neji. I know it's gonna be hard for you to accept…but I don't think Tenten is going to want to be a ninja anymore…"

Gai Sensei knew Neji was hurting inside, so he made his words as gentle as possible.

Neji froze, he didn't speak, he didn't look at Gai Sensei, he didn't walk towards Tenten. Neji just stood there, unable to organize all his mixed emotions.

Neji, still looking at the floor, said in a low voice, "Tenten will be the most amazing kunoichi that has ever lived."

Gai Sensei looked at Neji's expressionless face with curiosity.

"Because it's her dream," Neji finished.

Gai Sensei looked at Tenten sadly. Gai and Neji both remembered how enthusiastic Tenten was when she was a Genin that had just been assigned to team Gai.

_FLASHBACK_

"_Ok kids, let's introduce ourselves to eachother. Who would like to go first?" Gai Sensei asked brightly._

_Tenten raised her hand quickly. Gai Sensei beamed at her with sparkling white teeth and said, "Good! Please introduce yourself! Your name, age, likes, dislikes, and dreams."_

_Tenten stood up and cleared her throat as Neji, Lee, and Gai Sensei watched her._

"_Hi! My name is Tenten, some people call me Ama. I am 13 years old. I like a lot of things. I love weaponry, it's my specialty, and as for food, I love steamed sesame dumplings! Dislikes…hmm…I don't dislike many things…I HATE umeboshi though, so don't ever give me any for lunch please! And lastly, my dream is to become the greatest kunoichi that ever lived. My hero is the great Sannin, Tsunade-sama, she's amazing!"_

_Tenten slowly sat down. And Gai Sensei thought in his head, _this little one has some real potential.

_END OF FLASHBACK_

Tenten was quite the enthusiast back then. But now, she might never be happy again.

**A/N: Hey! Someone reviewed telling me I didn't have very much detail in my other two chapters, so sorry! I guess I got overexcited! Haha, I got that review while I was in the middle of writing this chapter, so I hope this chapter was a little bit better! Thanks a lot for all your guys' advice! Please comment/review, thanks!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I read a great fanfic that totally inspired me. Yay! And, I don't own Naruto.**

Chapter 4

The young Hyuuga couldn't bear being near his chocolate-haired teammate any longer. It was simply too painful. He wouldn't be able to handly getting near her, seeing her bruises, seeing her scars and cuts.

He quickly glanced at the sleeping kunoichi one last time before walking past Gai Sensei and out the hospital door. As he walked out the main entrance of the hospital, the nurse this time instead of glaring at him, gave him a look of sympathy once she found out what had happened to Tenten.

Neji walked slowly toward Ichiraku's Ramen Bar, looking at the ground. He couldn't face the evil world that had done this to his Tenten.

For all he knew, the culprits could be from his very own village of Konoha. Many villagers walking the opposite direction of Neji stared at him as they walked past him. They couldn't help but wonder why he looked so miserable. This young man usually looked so composed, and confident, but today he looked like he was going to commit suicide.

When he reached Ichiraku's Ramen bar, he found a stool and sat down. It was noisy and overcrowded inside the ramen shop, nothing unusual.

Ayame walked over to him with her usual clean white apron and smiled brightly at him, "Are you ready to order?"

Neji didn't even glance at her and just said, "I'll have a large bowl of plain ramen."

Ayame scribbled this down on a notepad and gave him a concerned look, _why is this boy so troubled?_

She nodded once she was done jotting down his order and bowed saying, "Your order will be ready in a few minutes, " and with that she left to take some other orders.

Neji couldn't concentrate on his thoughts with all the conversations buzzing around him. He couldn't help but overhear a few of them.

He heard Naruto and Iruka Sensei.

"Naruto, I'm very impressed with how much you've grown since the last time I saw you! You've learned some pretty amazing new techniques from Jiraiya-sama."

"Oh, you mean Ero-Sennin! Yeah, he used to be really lazy, but now he's teaching me more. But from time to time he'll leave me in the middle of training and say he has to do some more 'research.' What a pervert."

He heard Shikamaru and Temari.

"You were pretty weak on your last mission there, Shikamaru."

"You women, always pointing out men's flaws. How troublesome."

Neji's eyes also widened when he heard a conversation between two local villagers he wasn't familiar with.

An old lady said, "Did you hear about that young kunoichi that got raped? I think her name was Tenten or something."

An old man replied with a hint of anger, "Yes, I know very well what happened. Whoever did this should be skinned alive and dipped in hot oil."

Neji clenched his fists again as he heard about Tenten's scenario. He heard the old lady get out of her seat. He watched her as she left. He had never seen this woman before, _all the villagers must've heard about Tenten already._

Not long after the woman left, he heard the old man get out of his seat and pay. He could hear the rythmic footsteps of the old man drawing closer to him. _Creak, creak, creak, _Neji could hear the floorboards of the ramen bar creak as the old man walked. The creaking abruptly stopped a few feet behind Neji.

Neji felt the old man's large hand rest on his shoulder. He heard his old deep voice ask, "You're Neji…right?"

Neji stared at the old man behind him and nodded reluctantly.

The old man sat on the stool across from Neji without bothering to ask. He paused a bit before saying, "I remember you."

Neji didn't respond.

"Would you like to know how?"

Neji blankly responded, "I don't really care. But if it amuses you, go ahead."

The old man looked at Neji with a semi-surprised expression, "Looks like someone's in a bad mood today."

Neji twitched with annoyance.

Seeing Neji's strong irritation, the old man started, "But anyways. I remember when you were just a Genin. I saw you at the Chuunin exams."

Neji continued to stare at the old man as he told his story, not even showing a bit of interest.

"My niece thought you were pretty amazing and was very confident that you would win…we were all a bit surprised that you lost to that fox boy," the old man said slowly.

Neji was even more irritated now. One because Naruto was actually very skilled and Naruto was somewhat his friend, and two because he hated fan girls. He hated them the way Sasuke hated Ino.

Neji said bitterly, "Don't underestimate Naruto. Ever. Or he'll kill you."

The old man was silent. He didn't know how to respond.

Neji continued, "And furthermore, I have no interest in a girl who thinks she has found her true love just by watching a man fight once in a Chuunin exam."

The old man smirked at this remark, "For a man who says that, you sure spend a lot of time with her."

Neji's eyes slightly widened, but he regained his composure, "Your…niece…?"

The old man smirked and said quickly, "Tenten."

Neji's eyes softened. The haunting image of Tenten's limp body sleeping flashed through his mind. Neji couldn't bear it when Tenten was even touched by another guy, let alone brutally raped by several.

Seeing Neji's melancholy expression, the old man asked, "So I take it you've already visited her in the hospital?"

Neji looked down at the table, and nodded slightly.

The old man was almost scared to ask, "How…was she…?"

Neji didn't look up at the man. He fists clenched on the table, and he remained silent.

The man hesitantly remarked, "So…it's that bad huh…"

Ayame walked cheerfully toward Neji's table with a beaming smile, "Here are your noodles young ma…"

She stopped smiling and hesitantly put the steaming aromatic bowl of ramen on the table in front of Neji when she caught a look of the pain on Neji's face.

She quickly bowed and said, "Enjoy," before leaving.

Neji didn't feel like eating anymore. Neji stared down at his bowl of noodles and asked, "If you're a relative of hers, why haven't you visited her yet?"

The old man paused and it was his turn to look at the table. He hesitantly said, "I don't think I'll be able to handle what I see. Her parents told me they were horrified when they saw her…"

Neji twitched again remembering the horrible state Tenten was in when he saw her, "Delaying your trip to see her won't change what happened."

Neji suddenly remembered something that gave him a horrible pang of guilt. This whole incident could've been avoided if only he hadn't left his diary out in the open like that!

Tenten saw his diary and read through the pages and then thought that he was having an affair with Sakura. This caused her to storm back to her house at night alone, and Neji didn't go after her.

Neji spoke softly, "I should've escorted her home last night."

The man somewhat understood that Neji was feeling a large amount of guilt at the moment. He tried to reassure him, "We can't escape what destiny has in store for us."

Neji shook his head, "You're wrong. We can change our destiny."

The man looked at Neji with awe and stammered, "W-What…do you mean…?"

Neji stared at his noodles for a while before answering, "Uzumaki Naruto taught me that. You can work hard you change your destiny."

The man mulled over these words and nodded. Without warning, he got up and left the ramen bar without saying goodbye. Neji had completely forgotten to ask what his name was. Oh well, it didn't really matter to him.

Neji kept thinking about Tenten as he ate his noodles. Neji got angrier and angrier at whoever had done this to her. Once he finished his bowl of ramen, he sat there with his eyes closed, chopsticks still in his right hand.

Neji clenched his fists as he remembered Tenten holding onto him in her sleep telling him not to leave her. He whispered to an imaginary Tenten, "I'm sorry."

Neji opened his eyes only to find his right hand all bloody from the chopsticks that he had snapped while clenching his fists.

Temari looked at Neji with a worried look. "What's wrong with Neji?" she quietly asked Shikamaru. She wasn't aware of what happened to Tenten.

Shikamaru explained quickly, "Tenten was raped."

Temari muttered to herself, "Tenten…Tenten…who is she…"

Her mind suddenly clicked, "Oh, you mean that girl I beat during the Chuunin exams?"

Shikamaru nodded.

Temari grinned, "What? Are they lovers or something?"

Shikamaru shrugged, "I guess so."

Temari gave Neji one last worried glance before returning to her own bowl of ramen.

As quiet as Temari and Shikamaru tried to be, Neji heard them anyways. It was rare for Neji to miss a comment made about him or Tenten while he was around the person speaking. Ignoring their comments, he stood up and walked out of the ramen shop, forgetting to pay.

Teuchi was about to yell at him before Ayame quickly waved her hand in front oh his face frantically, "No no, Otousan! Something horrible just happened to his friend, please don't get worked up! He is just in pain. I'll pay for him."

Shikamaru, hearing this, walked up to Teuchi after him and Temari finished eating and gave him more than enough money saying, "Keep the change."

Teuchi gave him a peculiar look.

"I'm paying for Neji too," Shikamaru explained.

Neji continued to walk down the street, Tenten still lingering in his mind and on his heart. _Tenten, I'll be sure to kill whoever did this to you._

**A/N: Please comment/review, thanks!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I do not own Naruto.**

Chapter 5

The next morning, Hyuuga Neji's cell phone rang obnoxiously next to his futon, waking him up. Neji groaned and glanced at his clock, "Who could be calling me at 6 in the morning…"

Slowly, Neji picked up his phone and answered, "Hello?"

The strong voice of the Fifth rang clearly through his phone, "NEJI?"

Neji winced and held the phone a few inches further from his ear and said in a croaky voice, "Hn?"

Tsunade ordered, "Be at my office in 5 minutes. DON'T BE LATE!"

Neji twitched again and answered, "Hai."

The Fifth hung up. Neji set down his phone on the floor next to his futon and moaned again, burying his face in his soft white pillow, before springing out of bed and getting ready.

After he finished getting dressed and washing up, he left the house hastily and sprinted at top speed to the Hokage's office.

With the chilly wind in his face, Neji couldn't help but wonder if the news was about Tenten.

---

Once he reached Tsunade's office, he knocked. Almost immediately, her strong voice boomed, "Enter, Neji-san!"

_Since when did the Fifth wake up so early? _Neji thought.

He pushed the door open slowly and took a seat in front of the Hokage's desk.

Tsunade greeted, "Ohayo Neji."

Neji nodded, which wasn't considered the most respectful greeting to the Hokage.

Tsunade ignored this because of the incident that had happened, "Neji, the medical ninjas have sent me a horrible report about Tenten."

Neji nodded for her to continue.

"She…is currently…in…a coma…" Tsunade said hesitantly.

Neji's eyes widened. He tightened his lips before nodding. He asked blankly, "Anything else I should know?"

Tsunade shook her head but quickly added, "You know Neji…you should try spending some more time with her, it would make her happy."

Neji didn't look at her.

She continued, "But whatever you do, don't become an avenger like Uchiha Sasuke once did."

Neji nodded slightly, but in his head, he said _I will kill the people that did this to Tenten, _over and over again.

Tsunade gave him a stern look before sighing and saying, "You're dismissed."

Neji nodded, got out of his chair, and bowed. She forced a smile at him. Neji sulked over to the door and slowly closed it behind him.

Neji didn't feel like talking to anyone about Tenten. This anger was between him and the mysterious culprits.

---

Meanwhile, Naruto was at the Ichiraku Ramen Bar with Iruka Sensei. Irkua and Naruto had been spending a lot of time with Naruto lately because in Iruka's heart, he missed Naruto deeply. He missed the little blonde haired boy that was almost his son. But now Naruto was a grown man, strong and independent.

Naruto was just about finished gulping down the last of his flavorful broth when he noticed a brown haired shinobi with ivory eyes walking down the street. Hyuuga Neji. He looked like he was about to wring the neck of the next person that crossed his path.

Although Hyuuga Neji wasn't exactly Naruto's _favorite _person, Naruto couldn't help but feel sorry for the normally arrogant shinobi.

"Eh, Iruka Sensei," Naruto said, adjusting his forehead protector, "I'll be right back."

Iruka nodded and Naruto ran out of Ichiraku's Ramen Bar, looking frantically for Neji. After a few moments, Naruto glimpsed a part of Neji's long brown hair before he turned a corner. _He's headed toward the bridge, _Naruto thought. _He couldn't be thinking of commiting suici…oh no!_

Naruto sprinted at top speed and reached Neji right as he was at the bridge.

"NEJI NOOOOO!" Naruto yelled.

Neji looked at Naruto just to find a blonde haired boy knocking him down.

Neji irritadely said, "What do you want Naruto?"

Naruto tilted his head at Neji, "Y-you're…not going to commit…suicide?"

Neji smirked, "Why would I do that, dobe?"

Naruto said quietly, "Because you're hurting inside."

Neji's smirk turned into an angry glare that told him to leave, "Go away now, Naruto."

"Just let out your feelings! It'll make you feel a lot better!" Naruto said reassuringly.

"What would you know about how I feel?" Neji said bitterly.

Naruto was speechless.

"You couldn't possibly know how I feel," Neji's voice was rising, "Has one of your closest friends ever been raped because you let her walk home alone at night?"

Naruto remained silent.

"I didn't think so," Neji said coldly.

Naruto said quietly, "I guess I would only know how you felt if Sakura was raped because I let her walk home alone at night. But that hasn't happened, so…"

Neji turned around and said, "Forget it." Neji started walking toward the forest.

Naruto didn't find any point in chasing after the Hyuuga and called loudly, "IF YOU BECOME AN AVENGER…" Naruto felt a sharp pain in his heart thinking of his good friend Sasuke, "…it'll be the biggest mistake of your life."

Neji continued to ignore him.

He muttered under his breath, "I _will_ kill whoever did this to Tenten."

Neji walked over to the training ground where his team usually trained. Neji was hoping to get there early to train alone and vent out some anger, but to his demise, Gai Sensei and Lee were already there.

Neji cursed under his breath. _If Naruto had just shut up…_

Neji chose not to verbally acknowledge his sensei and teammate and attacked the sparring dummy strung up in the tree.

Naruto knew nothing of revenge, but he knew what strength was, a lesson Neji in all of his training had missed.

He wouldn't forget the true meaning of strength this time and he would prove to everyone his worth.

Lee pointed at Neji and whispered to his teacher, "Gai Sensei, Neji looks angrier than usual."

As they were talking Neji sent the dummy flying through the air, and it hit the ground with a soft _thud._

Gai Sensei smirked and nodded. Gai laid his hand on Lee's shoulder, "Yes, but you should understand…he…is feeling very intense pain from what happened to Tenten…"

Lee watched Neji intently as Neji repeatedly kicked a tree over and over again. Lee had never seen the Hyuuga in such a foul mood. Lee understood, and he admired Neji for not murdering someone by now.

Something clicked in Lee's mind, "Gai Sensei. Since Neji cares so much for Tenten…that couldn't possibly mean that he…_loves…_her…could it?" Lee was very naïve, but who could blame him? Lee said 'loves' in a hushed tone, as though it were a swear word.

Gai Sensei laughed in an embarassed way, "Uh…let's just say Neji likes Tenten the way you like Sakura."

Lee's eyes sparkled as he thought of the pink-haired kunoichi he had a crush on, "Sakura-san!"

Gai Sensei laughed heartily, it made him happy to see his two shinobi students finding love. "There's nothing better than the youthful love of springtime!" Gai Sensei exclaimed.

Neji, hearing this muttered loud enough for Lee and Gai Sensei to hear, "I am _not _in love with Tenten."

Lee giggled immaturely, "Whatever you say Neji!"

Neji would've killed Lee right then and there if Gai Sensei weren't there.

Gai Sensei silenced them in an attempt to break the tension between them. "I have thrilling news for you guys!"

Neji stayed silent but listened. Lee jumped up and down, "What is it, Gai Sensei? Tell me tell me tell me!"

Gai Sensei motioned for him to stop and said, "The Jounin exams are coming up in about one and a half months!"

Lee yelped with joy. But Neji remained silent.

Gai Sensei continued, "You guys will all be participating and I will make sure you all pass and become Jounins! I will train you guys like crazy!"

Neji reminded him, "I'm already a Jounin, Gai Sensei."

Gai Sensei wiggled his finger at him, "Don't think I forgot about you, Neji. I will be training you hard too, so you can help train Tenten while I specialize training Lee. Got it?"

Neji didn't nod, instead he said, "Tenten's in a coma."

"But the medical ninjas say they expect her to wake up in about 1 week. In that time I'll train you extremely hard, so you may train Tenten very well. I have a feeling she'll pass with flying colors," Gai Sensei said cheerfully.

Neji nodded slightly but thought, _that is…IF Tenten wakes up in a week._ Even though Neji somewhat doubted the prediction, the medical ninjas have been known to make very accurate predictions, so he also felt better knowing Tenten would most likely wake up in a week.

Gai Sensei yelled at Neji and Lee, "WE WILL RUN 300 LAPS AROUND KONOHA TODAY! MOVE IT MOVE IT MOVE IT!"

Lee grinned widely and sprinted as fast as he could alongside Gai Sensei while Neji paced himself slowly behind them.

_If I'm lucky, my legs might snap on lap 100, and maybe I won't have to do the other 200 laps._ Neji smirked at his foolish thoughts, _if I'm lucky that is…_

**A/N: Please comment/review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I do not own Naruto. Oh yeah, someone asked what fanfic I got inspiration from for this fanfic. Well, it was about Tenten getting raped and how Neji couldn't handle the pain and became an avenger…I kind of…didn't make Neji a permanent avenger because I didn't really like the idea. Anyways, enjoy!**

Chapter 6

A week had passed, and every day turned out the same for team Gai. They trained from 4 AM to midnight every day. Neji was about to die, although he wouldn't admit it. Within that week, Tenten had woken up. She had woken up four days before the prediction, but Neji couldn't be by her side because of all the training.

Today was going to be different, however. Gai Sensei had spoken to Neji yesterday after their abnormally long training session had ended.

_FLASHBACK_

"_Neji! Can I have a word with you?" Gai Sensei called to Neji before he started walking home._

_Neji nodded and hesitantly walked over to his instructor._

_Neji expected Gai Sensei was going to add more hours onto Neji's training schedule._

"_Listen, I feel like I need to spend more time polishing Lee's skills. Since you're already a Jonin, you can have the day off tomorrow, ok? I'm going to train Lee with all I have tomorrow."_

_Neji nodded, acting as if he wasn't interested, but in his head he let out a loud sigh of relief. Instead of more hours of training, he was actually receiving a one day break._

_Lucky for Lee, training was one of Lee's favorite things in the world (probably second only to springtime), and tomorrow he would get extreme training. Lee would be the happiest man in the world tomorrow._

_END OF FLASHBACK_

Neji woke up early and walked over to Tenten's house. He knocked on the door politely. There was no response. Neji knocked again, thinking they must've not heard him the first time. When no one responded again, Neji grew suspicious, _Tenten should be home. She already checked out of the hospital._ Neji activated his Byakuan and looked through the door.

He found no traces of any human chakra systems on any floor of her house. Right at that moment, Neji's cell phone rang inside his pocket.

Neji quickly deactivated his Byakugan and answered, "Hello?"

It was the Fifth again and her voice rang loudly through the cell phone, "NEJI! COME TO MY OFFICE IMMEDIATELY!"

Neji let out a loud sigh, _again? _But Neji answered responsibly, "Hai, I'll be there in a few minutes."

Tsunade said goodbye and Neji hung up. Neji sprinted at top speed to the Hokage's office once again, _it must be about Tenten._

---

Neji was correct. Once he entered the Hokage's office, filled with the aroma of sake, he sat on the chair in front of Tsunade's desk. Tsunade spoke to Neji in a serious manner, "Tenten and her family have been held captive and it is up to you to go retrieve her."

Neji's brow furrowed, "Alone? Shouldn't I go with at least 2 other shinobi?"

Tsunade shook her head and said reluctantly, "All the other ninjas Chuunin and above are all on missions, including Gai and Lee. Gai has requested to not have any missions assigned to himself due to the fact that he _really_ wants his students to succeed in the Chuunin Exmas."

Neji said blankly, "You mean he wants Lee to succeed."

Tsunade threw him a questioning look.

Neji continued, "Tenten's been in a coma and now she's been captured. I'm already a Jonin so it doesn't matter. Lee is really the only student Gai Sensei's worried about right now. He couldn't care less about Tenten."

Tsunade looked at him with concerned eyes, "Neji…don't say that…Gai does care…it's just…"

Neji didn't want to hear anymore. He broke in, "I don't care. He can train Lee all he wants, but I have to save Tenten, or I'll never forgive myself."

The Fifth stayed silent.

Neji clenched his fists and looked down with anger at the Hokage's desk, _it's not fair. Tenten's suffered so much. She doesn't deserve any of this._

The Hokage watched his facial expressions and understood Neji felt like it was his obligation to rescue Tenten. He already let Tenten get raped and he couldn't let Tenten get killed now.

It was his duty to save her.

The Fifth broke into Neji's thoughts and said, "Ok Neji. Tenten is in the Hidden Mist Village. She is not with Orochimaru, thankfully, but she has been captured by the Demon Brothers – Gozu and Meizu."

Neji nodded for her to continue.

"Gozu is the older brother, and Meizu is the younger brother. We haven't experienced an attack from them for an extremely long time. The last time, Team 7 fought them when Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were fresh out of the academy, and they were still able to beat them. You should have no trouble at all saving Tenten," Tsunade-sama informed him.

Neji nodded, walked out of the door and said before leaving, "This won't take long."

As the dark haired Jonin walked out the door, the Hokage looked at the door he had just gone out of with concern. "Be careful Neji," she whispered.

---

Neji sprinted to the dock and traveled to the Hidden Mist Village in a boat alone, the trip took about half an hour. As he entered the village, he couldn't help but notice how thick the fog was getting.

"Byakugan!" Neji said forcefully as he slightly squinted his eyes, looking through the fog.

Neji didn't see anyone there to greet him or anything, so as soon as he got to the Hidden Mist Valley, he tied up his boat with a thick rope to the dock.

Neji had no time to lose. He sprinted straight forward, Byakugan fully activated, looking in all directions for any signs of Tenten. The village was unusually silent. The only sounds that could be heard were the fast paced footsteps from the Hyuuga.

All of a sudden, a shrill scream pierced the silence and Neji stopped in his tracks. He swore under his breath, _Tenten._

Neji continued to run in the direction of the scream when suddenly he saw it. A building was on fire. Neji scanned the inside of the building with his skillfull eyes and saw Tenten crouched down with her mom and dad in a corner. They all hugged eachother tightly, screaming for help.

Neji was about to go inside the building to rescue them, but Gozu and Meizu – the Demon Brothers – suddenly popped out of no where. They got in unique fighting stances and Neji sighed, _I guess I'll have to wait…sorry Tenten._

Tenten saw Neji through a crack of the flaming building. She screamed, "NEJI!! HELLPPP!!!"

It pained Neji to see Tenten in such desperation. He turned a serious face to the Demon Brothers and said menacingly, "Let's get this over with quickly."

Both the brothers smirked at the same time and charged at Neji. They were about to wrap Neji in a strong chain before Neji span quickly releasing a heavy amount of chakra, dodging all their attempts of attacking. Once Neji was sure they were both worn out a little, he struck all of their vital chakra points quickly and forcefully. He paralyzed them both, and they laid on the floor, their faces begging for mercy. Neji was in such a rage that they had attempted to hurt Tenten, that he heartlessly slit their throats without thinking twice.

"Farewell Demon Brothers," Neji whispered bitterly.

Neji turned his attention back to Tenten. Something was horribly wrong. Tears were streaming down Tenten's face quickly and there were two dead bodies next to her.

Neji stared awestruck, _Tenten's…parents…_

Neji didn't think about getting burned and quickly ran into the flaming building, getting a few minor burns on his legs. He winced a little every time he felt the seething fire lick his skin. Once he reached the corner Tenten was in, he looked at her parents. No use trying to save them, they were deader than a doorknob by now.

Neji picked Tenten up, who buried her face into his chest crying. Neji felt so bad for Tenten, what had she done to deserve all this? Neji ran out of the building, holding Tenten close to his body, making sure she didn't get burned.

He got Tenten out of the building physically unscathed right before it collapsed. Tenten's eyes widened as she watched the building crumble before her eyes. She whispered slowly, "Okaasan…Otousan…"

Neji watched the girl in pain and said quietly, "Gomensai…I couldn't…save them…"

Tenten shook her head slowly, her eyes still focused on the crumbled building, "It's…" her lip began to tremble, "ok…"

A few more tears leaked out of her eyes before she buried her head in Neji's chest again and cried. Neji held her and picked her up again. He walked her slowly to the boat and they sorrowfully left the Hidden Mist Village. That was the last time Tenten saw her parents.

---

The two ninjas reached Konoha. Naruto just happened to be walking by the dock and saw Neji holding Tenten. A grin formed on his face as he was about to shout, _how's your girlfriend Neji? _But he refrained from acting immaturely around them when he saw Tenten's slightly swollen eyes, _she must've been crying._

All the shinobi of Konoha knew Neji had gone on a mission to save Tenten and her parents. Naruto noticed Tenten's parents weren't with them. His face fell and he clenched his fists, _so Tenten…is like me now…_

Naruto thought of the sweet innocent girl he had known since he was in the academy. She had never backstabbed anyone, she had never talked about people brutally behind their backs, she didn't gossip very much either. She always gave you a gift on your birthday even if you didn't give her one on hers, she would always stay by your side when you were going through hard times, and she always had a way of making you smile. Naruto's brow furrowed, _what did she do to deserve this?_

Naruto left them after glancing at Tenten one last time. Neji noticed the blonde boy earlier, but he was glad to see him leave. The last thing he needed now was an annoying voice giving them a pep talk.

Tenten slowly woke up and looked up at Neji, "Ne…ji…"

Neji kept walking towards the hospital, "Hn?"

Tenten blinked a few times and realized where he was taking her, "No, Neji! I don't want to go to the hospital, I can't! I've spent too much of my life there already as it is!" Tenten wriggled, trying to get Neji to put her down.

Neji forcefully gripped her harder and assured, "Don't worry, I'm not taking you there. You're coming to my house."

Tenten calmed down and looked straight into his eyes, "Arigato."

---

Once Neji laid her down on his futon, Tenten looked up at him. Her arms were neatly placed right above her abdomen. She started speaking quietly, "Neji…I don't think…I want to be a kunoichi anymore…"

Neji wasn't surprised by her words. He shrugged, "That's understandable."

She continued, "So I'm going to resign from Team Gai."

Neji's casual expression turned into a tense one. He said in a strained tone, "No. You can't."

She looked at him with her deep chocolate eyes, "Why not Neji?"

"Because Gai and Lee need you."

Tenten eyed him.

Neji remained silent for a few moments before adding, "_I _need you…"

Tenten's blank face filled up with bitterness, "No you don't, you have that Haruno girl."

Neji's eyes widened, _Tenten didn't check her voicemail. _Neji explained, "Tenten, check your voicemail."

Tenten paused for a few seconds, searching those ivory eyes for any hints of trickery, and then picked up her phone and found 'You Have 1 New Voicemail!'

She listened to it. Neji watched her intently. Once she flipped her phone closed she smiled a bit, "Gomensai for getting mad at you like that Neji…"

Neji smirked, "It's ok, that's just how women are."

Tenten threw a pillow hard at his face, "I dare you to say that again!"

Neji smirked again, "Wo-men-are-troublesome!"

Tenten lunged at him and pinned him to the floor, "Say that again."

"Do you dare me?" A smile creeped through Neji's lips.

Tenten nodded.

"You're beautiful," Neji said grinning.

Instead of attacking him, Tenten lowered her lips and met his. Neji wrapped his arms around her fragile body and Tenten's arms were resting against his chest. They stayed like that for about five minutes until they each were breathless.

Tenten panted, forgetting her sorrow.

Neji thought about the position he was in. His dad had died, Tenten's parents had died, and Tenten was on top of him right now. Tenten's parents had always suddelly dissapproved of her spending time with Neji because he was part of "the arrogant Hyuuga clan." But now, who was stopping them? His mom? His mom was only considered a Hyuuga because she was married to one. Don't get me wrong, Neji felt bad for the death of Tenten's parents, but instead of grieving forever, he would rather start over with Tenten.

Neji reluctantly asked, "Tenten…"

Tenten looked dreamily at him, "Hn?"

"Will you marry me?"

Tenten looked into his eyes before blushing slightly, "Of course."

Neji held onto her has she slowly fell asleep ontop of him, dreaming of their life together.

When they woke up at around 4:00 PM, they took a walk around Konoha.

They walked by the tall white building that Tenten had been living in too many times. The place Sakura worked. The place Tenten got blood all over Neji's face. The Konoha hospital.

Tenten smiled as she looked up at the tall building. She remembered when she was there because of her respiratory problems, when she was there because she had been raped. She also remembered back in her Genin days when she had been there to visit Lee after he fought Gaara in the Chuunin Exams. She remembered visiting Neji after he returned from the Sasuke Pursuit mission.

Many memories were formed in the hospital, good and bad. Over the few months, horrible things happened to Tenten. She was raped, she thought Neji was cheating on her, her parents died.

But now, things were bound to change for the better. She would start over with Neji by her side. Neji forgot about getting revenge for Tenten, it wasn't worth it. ANBU would kill them anyways. As long as he was by Tenten, it was alright.

The future looked bright for Tenten, she would become as strong as Tsunade-sama, she would be a Jonin soon enough, and she would have kids…but we'll talk about that later…

Tenten took one last glance at the hospital she had spent so much time in before walking away with Neji, hand in hand. Tenten was free from her past. Tenten was reassured she would no longer be hurt with Neji by her side. She was no longer hospitalized.

**A/N: Please comment/review. I worked hard. I didn't think it was…too…bad. Anyways, if you have a story request, email me: check my profile for my email. I love story requests, so don't hesitate. Hope you liked this fanfic!**


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